By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
There was a lot at stake when the Brownsville Porter Cowgirls played host to the Brownsville Lopez Lady Lobos in the regular season finale Monday.
The Battle of Southmost girls soccer edition was the de facto District 32-5A championship game, with Lopez coming in one point ahead of Porter in the standings. It was a close match between the top two teams, and the score stood at 1-1 at the end of regulation.
Porter came out on top 4-3 in penalty kicks to earn its second district title in two years, this time splitting the honor with Lopez.
“It’s an awesome feeling. They’re excited because it’s barely the second title in our history,” Porter coach Abraham Gracia said. “ Last year we did a good job, too. But last year we didn’t get to go to the playoffs, so it’s an awesome feeling that the hard work is paying off.”
The Cowgirls showed how badly they wanted this win and a piece of the title over Spring Break. Gracia said he wanted to give them the weekend off, but the girls said, “No Coach, we play Monday, we have to practice.” They showed up for a Saturday morning practice, and Gracia believes their bond and dedication are key factors in the young squad’s success.
Porter was aggressive from the opening whistle to immediately take control of the tempo and possession. The Cowgirls kept Lopez from getting the ball across to the Lady Lobos’ side of the 50-yard line for the first seven minutes of the game. Denisse Romero and Azaneth Perez got Porter’s offense attacking early, but goalkeeper Grecia Quinones and the Lopez defense kept Porter off the board.
Keenia Palacios, Jeanette Aguirre and Brianna Guzman defended well for Porter and kept the Lady Lobos’ offense out of sync. The Cowgirls passed well and created several scoring chances in the first half, but the game remained scoreless at halftime. Jennifer Gamez and Jennifer Cepeda were key contributors on Lopez’s defensive effort.
Lopez battled for possession more effectively during the second half. Zayra Esquivel, Emily Cantu and Emily Yanez got the Lady Lobos’ offense going, and started putting pressure on Porter’s defense and goalkeeper Katherine Salas.
The final 20 minutes of regulation got physical as both teams picked up the urgency with the game still knotted at zero. Quinones was active in net, coming out to block kicks and notch saves as the Cowgirls pushed the ball down field to Perez and Liberty Garza for scoring chances.
During the 34th minute, Aguirre put the first point on the board for Porter after a block attempt by Quinones caused the ball to ricochet into the net. Lopez responded quickly as Yanez slipped a goal just passed the reach of a diving Salas to tie the game at 1 with just more than five minutes remaining.
“It just shows the maturity and the communication the girls have, that chemistry they have to come together,” Lopez coach Alex Macias said of the quick response. “Porter’s a really good team, they have really good players and the coach does really well with them. Our girls deserve to be up there on top as well, and it’s not over, we’re still moving on, so I’m really proud of them.”
The Cowgirls got one final chance to seal the win in regulation on a penalty kick following a collision that sidelined Romero, but Quinones came up with the save.
Camila Minez, Palacios, Angela Vallejo, Guzman and Perez successfully converted their penalty kicks to edge out Lopez and notch Porter’s second PK victory over the Lady Lobos this season.
“They’re a really good team, too, but at the end of the day I think we played a little bit better,” Gracia said. “I think it was their passing and possession (that made the difference.) Our possession helps us a lot. And the team bond. They play really well together as a team, and I think that helps a lot. It’s a very complete team.”